Catching Up With Charlie (Companion Piece 17)
by Meamit
Summary: Charlie and Hugo discuss life and family during the summer of before his fifth year *Conversation only, no description* A companion piece to follow on from Chapter 86 of Just Between Us. Read that to understand this!


"Hugo? Are you in here, mate?"

"… Uncle Charlie? What are you doing here?!"

"Nice to see you too – Oof, steady on!"

"I can't believe you're here, I just sent you a letter this morning – Come inside! You've got to meet Finn!"

"Are you sure he wants to meet me?"

"Of course! He even likes mum and she still jumps every time he comes into the house – Finn? Finn!"

"Your poor mum, outnumbered by wild animals in her own home!"

"She doesn't _really_ mind. I don't think… So, why are you here, Charlie?"

"Do I need to have a reason?"

"No, but you usually have."

"That's true. Your Grandma and Granddad need a bit of help around the house."

"The hen coop?"

"The hen coop. So, where is this beast of yours? Your grandma seems to think its all my influence that you found him in the first place!"

"It was the other way around, Uncle Charlie – _he _found _me_... There he is - oh, he's still sleeping!"

"He's… big!"

"Yeah. He's not even two yet, but they grow fast. Well, that's what the book says. I could only find one in the library."

"What, one Griffin?"

"No, one _book!"_

"Ohh. Well, that's probably because it's very rare for a wizard to gain a Griffin's trust. You must have a very sincere heart, Hugo."

"Charlie!"

"I mean it. It's quite a compliment. Of course, I'm not surprised. After all, you _are_ my godson."

"Oh yeah? Finn didn't know that!"

"Details, details! So tell me, what's been happening since I saw you at Christmas?"

"Nothing much. I've been doing a bit of wood carving since school finished. My Granddad Granger taught me how. Look!"

"Hugo, this is amazing."

"You… uh, you think so?"

"I do! And you did this without magic?"

"Yeah. It's for Rosie's birthday. I'm going to try a dragon next."

"Which breed?"

"I've got a few sketches here, hang on… This one is –"

"A Vipertooth! It's good. Would the wood be able to support a wingspan this wide?"

"Probably not if I did that one, but I was going to curl his wing like this – What do you think?"

"I think you have to send me photographs of the whole process!"

"I could – I could send it to you? When it's finished, if you want to see?"

"I'd love that, Hugo."

"Right, uh, no problem. I'm going to teach Joseph too, when we get back to school."

"How's Joe doing these days?"

"He's fine. He and Laura were here for a few weeks at the beginning of the summer."

"Laura, eh?"

"What? She's my friend!"

"Friend, eh?"

"_Just_ my friend, Charlie."

"Of course, that's what I meant!"

"Yeah, right. If you want to tease anyone, go find Rosie. _She's _the one with a boyfriend!"

"Rose is seeing someone?"

"Didn't I tell you? She's dating Scorpius Malfoy."

"You're not serious…?"

"I am. They've been going out since February, I think. At least, that's when they started holding hands in the library. It's disgusting!"

"Bloody hell. No wonder your dad's in a bad mood."

"That's because she's gone to Diagon Alley to meet him for the day."

"Ah. You know, I didn't think a Malfoy would be her type."

"Yeah, but the guy who was 'her type' let her down, didn't he? Stupid git."

"_What?_ She had a boyfriend before this one?"

"Er… I'm not really supposed to talk about it."

"Hugo, what happened? What do you mean, 'let her down'?"

"Promise me you'll pretend that you don't know any of this?"

"Only if it doesn't affect Rose's safety."

"Alright. You remember when she was sick, over Christmas?"

"Don't remind me! I still feel guilty…"

"Well, she was in, um… a _long distance_ relationship and the guy never bothered to show up. Too worried that he'd get sick and it'd affect his game."

"His game? Who –?"

"So he sent her flowers instead. A huge vase of them. But that's not really the same, is it?"

"No, I suppose not."

"Then Malfoy turned up on Christmas Eve and he brought her a box full of photos and stuff from all their years in Hogwarts, to keep her entertained."

"Malfoy did that?"

"I know, we couldn't believe it either! He wrote her a letter for each day of the Christmas break, so that she wouldn't feel lonely and he came back three more times after that evening."

"A bit obvious, isn't he?"

"I think it made Rosie realise a few things. So she told, um… the other guy that she'd rather date someone who gave her what she needed, rather than what he thought she wanted, or something like that. Malfoy hasn't stopped grinning since."

"Poor Ron!"

"It's okay, I had words with him."

"With your dad?"

"No, with Malfoy."

"Did you really? I'm sure he loved that!"

"He got the point, that's all that matters."

"What do you think of him, Hugo?"

"He's not the worst Slytherin you'll ever meet. He's very protective of Rosie. Once, when Peony Warrington threw snake venom at Rosie during Potions, Scorpius shielded her and ended up with a scar on his shoulder. He wasn't impressed when I told him it was practically Gryffindorish of him – I mean, he could've just used _Protego!_"

"Hold on. Someone threw venom at Rose? During a class?"

"Yeah. The girl said it was an accident, but… That sort of thing happens sometimes."

"Has it happened to you?"

"Not really. Nothing serious, anyway. Plus, everyone in Gryffindor looks out for us."

"Hugo –"

"Don't worry, Uncle Charlie. We're okay."

"Are you sure?"

"Yeah. There's always somebody with a grudge, isn't there? But I'm not going to let it get me down."

"Well, at least we know your mum and dad are doing a good job… How about a little help at the Burrow, eh?"

"Yeah, sure."

"I happen to know that your grandma's making roast beef tonight, too."

"Roast beef? You should've said so before! Are we late?!"

"Spoken like a true Weasley! Come on then, better tell your dad before we go."

"Do you think there'll be Yorkshire pudding?"

"I have no idea."

"And apple crumble for afters?"

"You couldn't be any more like Ron if you tried!"

"That's a good thing. Grandma says he's her favourite."

"She doesn't!"

"She says it every week after dinner, when he stays back and tries to help with the washing up."

"Says what, exactly?"

"That he's her favourite youngest son, of course!"

"Ah, of course!"

"Charlie…? Are you sticking around for a while?"

"I'll be here for ten days, you won't be able to get rid of me."

"Wouldn't want to."

"… Glad to hear it."


End file.
